Christmas With You Is The Best
by ModernRomeo
Summary: Set during OotP. Harry starts to see Luna in a different light after the end of the DA Christmas party. HarryLuna Oneshot.


Disclaimer: I own nothing HP-related. If I did, I'd have Harry and Luna be the ONLY pairing in the story, except for married couples of course.

A/N: Something I felt like doing, after a couple parody one-shots. It's Harry/Luna obviously, cause I love the pairing and it's more or less the only good pairing in the books (well, long term-relationship wise anyways). So yeah.

Harry paced in front of the wall. One...two...three times, when a door appeared, not surprising the young boy. Opening it quickly, it was closed just as soon, to prevent unfavorable company from finding out what he was up to. Tonight was just another meeting of the DA (Dumbledore's Army), but instead of continuing to train, like they had been doing since it was founded, they would celebrate Christmas (if a little early), as Harry was nice enough to let them have the night off. That, and he had the insatiable urge to throw a (early) Christmas party in the Room of Requirement.

Ten minutes to 8 o'clock, he stood at the entrance of the room, beaming with pride at what he had accomplished. While he could have simply _wished_ for the room to set up a party room to fit everyone, he decided to do things the Muggle way; again, another insatiable urge. After catching his breath (the downside of doing things the Muggle way), he noticed people were starting to enter the room, taking in the scene with a look of awe, which made Harry feel even more proud of what he had done.

When everyone had shown up, he stood, imaging a bottle of butterbeer to show up on the table in front of him, he took a sip while everyone looked at him with anticipation.

"No working tonight, I figured since we've worked so hard the last few weeks, we should take a break to kick back and relax. Besides, who ever heard of working on a holiday, and Christmas at that? Not me, that's for sure. So grab a butterbeer, mingle, you know, act your age," he said simply as he sat back down in the comfortable couch that made the butterbeer taste better somehow. Imagining a Wireless unit, he flipped it on to some Christmas mood, to get people to relax and enjoy the holidays.

Eventually everyone got into the spirit and slowly started to enjoy the party, the Twin's had somehow smuggled some of their experimental products and slipped them amongst the treats that were laid out, diligently writing down the outcome whenever a poor sap grabbed the wrong snack.

3 Canary Creams later, Neville decided that he'd had too much to eat, and retreated to his dorm, to get a head start on his sleep to get up in time to catch the Hogwarts Express to the Platform. Like a domino effect, everyone slowly thanked Harry for the party and wished him a Merry Christmas, while Harry still sat on the still comfortable couch, enjoying his 3rd butterbeer. After Ron and Hermione had left (telling him to get to bed or he'd be dragging in the morning), he finally stood up and stretched, having not moved the entire night, instead preferring to talk to people from the comfort of the couch. It seemed that only Luna Lovegood was left, who looked rather down, from where he was standing.

She seemed so...lost, standing there in the middle of the room, his heart went out to her in sympathy, wondering why he didn't see her standing all alone during the party. If he'd had known, he would have asked her to sit with him, if only to make her feel accepted. Sure, he admitted she was a little weird, and sometimes confusing, but there was something about her that made him dread her encounters and departures, as though she could both brighten and darken his day with a simple word.

Maybe it had to do with the fact he realized how cruel the other students were to him, or maybe he was feeling too sympathetic towards her, but he felt as though he should try and make the night end on a positive note for her.

"Hey Luna," he said softly, as though his words could shatter her like fragile glass. She seemed oblivious to his voice, staring blankly at the floor.

He stepped closer, to alert her of his presence, which seemed to catch her attention. Looking up slowly, she took in the room, while her eyes gave him the impression her mind was still elsewhere. "Harry?" she asked softly, as though she was waking up from a pleasant slumber.

"Yeah, it's me," he replied simply, thankful he had imagined the room with a fireplace that never went out, as he suddenly got the impression it was cold in the room. "Everyone else had left and I didn't realize you were still here until I got up and stretched," he continued sheepishly.

"Oh..." she trailed off, looking deep in thought.

"Are...you...okay?" he questioned her.

"Yes, just a little tired from not focusing on Nargles. They live in mistletoe you know, and tend to feast on the microwaves that escape from your ears. Why do you ask?"

Harry was silent for a moment, before answering. "Uh, nothing, I was just a little worried something was wrong when you didn't answer me, and you looked kinda sad just standing there," he blurted out suddenly, embarrassed for some odd reason.

Luna looked at him oddly, before a small smile appeared on her face. "You're the first person to mention that, Harry. Most people would just assume I'm trying some 'weird' meditation technique, or am trying to avoid creatures they think don't exist. But I'm only human, and humans need to feel emotions in order to live. Otherwise we'd be nothing but shells, moving from one place to another, never finding what we subconsciously searching for, ya know?"

Again Harry was silent, but he began to realize what she said was true. He had seen a part of her she let others see, but they always pushed it aside, assuming she was trying to get attention, when in truth, she was suffering, as much as any other human being, on the inside. Unlike other people, however, she didn't let it get to her, or to interfere with helping those in need, she pushed it aside, to deal with it at a later time, which (in his mind) made her seem like a much better person than anyone at Hogwarts.

It also made him realize, that mourning Cedric was pointless. He realized that the boy wouldn't want Harry to mope around and let his death be in vain, he'd want Harry to avenge numerous other families torn apart by Voldemort, to become a better person than the Dark Lord, to live and enjoy life. Motioning over to the couch (_his_ couch, he added mentally), he indicated that Luna take a seat, with the fireplace a scant 15 feet away, close enough to keep them moderately warm, but far enough away for the heat to not seem smothering.

Taking a seat next to Luna, Harry tried to initiate conversation with her. After a few failed topics (including Quidditch, and the absurdity of Divination), he decided a different approach, he asked her what she liked, what she disliked, etc. It seemed after enough prodding, she opened up to him, if only enough to seem appropriate with acquaintances, first telling him she enjoyed blueberry pancakes made the Muggle way, then eventually telling him how she disliked how some people ignored her without knowing anything more than what they heard. While she knew they would ignore her if they knew enough about her, it was the fact people would listen to other people's opinions than form their own.

Eventually she asked him the same questions, what he liked (Quidditch, but she figured that from the failed conversation on the topic earlier), what he disliked (Ron's unbearable snoring), and everything in between (how he hated going back to the Dursley's every summer). It felt...invigorating to get it off his chest; after months (years in the case of the Dursley's) of pent up feelings, he was able to get most of it off his chest in a single night, and he thanked Luna profusely for it, in which she thanked him for being her "first, true friend".

Slowly the fireplace didn't keep them as warm as they hoped, and Harry imagined a large blanket for them to share (it was large enough to cover the whole couch with plenty extra room), while remaining in their seats on the comfortable couch.

They sat there in silence, simply enjoying each others company, while watching the flames dance to and fro, in a mute battle of passion, each wave attempting to out do the previous, oblivious to the audience it had gathered.

Harry felt something on his hand, and turned his head slightly to look at Luna, who was entranced with the fire. The flames made Harry turn his head more to get a good look at her, he was captivated by the serene beauty she exuded, having never seen something quite like her in his short life. Cliché it may sound, but he found no other comparison to her beauty.

It seemed she noticed him staring at her, and turned her head towards him. "Harry?" she questioned innocently.

"Luna, I think I just saw a Nargle float by your ear. Is there any way to keep them away?" he asked softly.

She nodded, and told him he would need to whisper near her ear because Nargle's are envious of those who can speak (they're mute, she told him). His lips brushed past her ear, an innocent gesture, but she sighed at the contact, making him lose focus and courage. "Anyone ever tell you you're one of the more pretty girls in the school?"

Luna was silent for a moment, and Harry began to feel heat radiating from her face, though he was curious. Surely she wouldn't be embarrassed at such a comment...right? Bringing him to face her, he saw her eyes were starting to water slightly. Worried he had upset her, he tried to comfort her, but was surprised when she lurched forward and pinned him down on the cough, her body heaving slightly on his chest, making him fear that he had hurt her. Trying to comfort her, he succeeded in calming her after a few tense moments, during which he felt terrible about upsetting her with a comment the Twins had told him a lot of girls liked.

His attempts to apologize were in vain, as she hushed him with a simple finger on the lips, and explained that her mother had told her she would grow into a beautiful girl when she got older, and would be envied by all others. The tears were more from happiness than anything else. After Harry told her it was a strange way of showing happiness from a simple comment, to which she reminded him she was "strange", making Harry blush in embarrassment.

"Since you made that comment, it means we're boyfriend and girlfriend, right Harry?" if possible, Harry got even more embarrassed and started making incomprehensible sentences trying to justify the situation. Again, Luna silenced him with a finger on the lips, and told him it was alright if he made the comment just to make her feel better. Deciding to test his luck (with his ability to speak), he told her he said it was true, and that he felt that way.

"Yep," he told her out of the blue.

She looked at him curiously. "What was that Harry?"

He looked at her softly, then leaned his head forward and gave her a gentle kiss, her shock evident, but faded quickly as they parted from their first shared kiss.

"I was referring to your previous comment, on how my compliment means we're boyfriend and girlfriend, silly." he said before kissing her again.

A/N: Another one-shot done, except this one's not an attempt at a parody. Opinions? Comments? Flames?


End file.
